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Tag Archives: Bradley

Anniversary celebrations became something of a staple at last years Tribeca Film Festival after audiences were treated to (and blown away by) a special 45th anniversary cast-and-crew reunion of Francis Coppola’s mafia epic, The Godfather. This year, however, audiences will be treated to not one, but two cast reunions from two equally impressive cinematic icons, Brian De Palma’s Scarface and Steven Spielberg’s Holocaust drama Schindler’s List. De Palma and actors Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer are set to reunite for a special screening of Scarface at the Beacon Theater on April 19th. The same venue will also host a screening of Schindler’s List on April 26th, along with a discussion panel with director Steven Spielberg and actors Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, and Embeth Davidtz. The 17th annual Tribeca celebration will also host Tribeca Talks: The Directors Series and Tribeca Talks: Storytellers with directors and actors like Alexander Payne, Laura Poitras, Bradley Cooper, Spike Lee, and Alec Baldwin, as well as a Tribeca Talks: The Journey panel highlighting Sarah Jessica Parker. Tickets for the 2018 celebration are on sale now.

After six years of production, research, and documentation, filmmaker Laura Poitras‘s personal look at the minds behind Wikileaks, a documentary called Risk, is now playing in theaters. Risk is not so much an investigation into Wikileaks, itself. Rather, Poitras walks the audience through a series of character studies surrounding the organizations’ founders and chief players, specifically Julian Assange and Jacob Applebaum. Early on in her investigation, the filmmaker views the acts of Assange and Applebaum as courageous and heroic. Over the course of her six-year endeavor, however, her work and personal life became irreversibly interlaced with Wikileaks. She went to Applebaum (whom she has had a personal relationship with) for advice on how to handle information provided by a top secret informant, who we now know was former NSA contractor Edward Snowden. She also co-founded the Freedom of the Press Foundation to raise money for Wikileaks, an organization that she goes back and forth with in terms of legal journalism and moralistic integrity, which she explores in the new documentary. Continue reading →

Last year, producer-turned-writer/director Marc Abraham (Air Force One, Children of Men) debuted his new biographical drama, I Saw The Light, at the Toronto International Film Festival. The film is a portrayal of the life of country music singer/songwriter Hank Williams Jr., and was adapted by Abraham from the book Hank Williams: The Biography by authors Colin Escott, George Merritt, and William MacEwen. Starring as Williams is actor Tom Hiddleston (Midnight in Paris, The Avengers), appearing alongside co-stars Elizabeth Olsen (Godzilla, Avengers: Age of Ultron), David Krumholtz (Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle, This Is The End), Bradley Whitford (Scent of a Woman, Saving Mr. Banks), and Cherry Jones (Signs, The Village). Although the film has not been well received by critics, fans have praised the performances of both Hiddleston, and Elizabeth Olsen as his first wife Audrey Mae. Some movie-goers will be able to see it in theaters this weekend, but the trailer is available here on MADE. Check your local listings for showings this Friday.

A new sci-fi thriller called 10 Cloverfield Lane is opening in theaters this Friday, March 11th, 2016. Although you might recognize the title, aside from the name, there is apparently no other connection to the original 2008 thriller Cloverfield, which involved a monster of sorts attacking the residents of New York City. This new movie comes from director Dan Trachtenberg from a script by screenwriters Josh Campbell (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, Van Helsing), Matthew Stuecken (The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra), and Damien Chazelle (Grand Piano, Whiplash) about a woman who is involved in a car accident and is held in a shelter by two men who believe the world has been affected by a widespread chemical attack. Starring in the film are actors John Goodman (The Big Lebowsky, Argo), Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Live Free or Die Hard, Death Proof), John Gallagher (Margaret, The Newsroom), Douglas M. Griffin (Dallas Buyers Club, 12 Years A Slave), Suzanne Cryer (Wag the Dog, Silicon Valley), Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook, The Hangover), and Sumalee Montano (Nashville, Veep). The trailer is available here on MADE; check it out on the big screen this weekend!

A new drama featuring recurring co-stars Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games, X-Men: Days of Future Past) and Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, American Sniper) titled Joy is now playing in theaters nationwide. The two stars are again directed by writer/director David O. Russell (American Hustle, Silver Linings Playbook), in the story of Joy Mangano, the woman who invented the Miracle Mop and became the matriarch of her family business and dynasty, but not before she encounters betrayal and treachery on her way to success. Also joining the two co-stars is their third recurring co-star Robert DeNiro (Goodfellas, Casino), with actors Edgar Ramirez (Vantage Point, The Liberator), Diane Ladd (Chinatown, Christmas Vacation), Virginia Madsen (Sideways, Firewall), and Isabella Rossellini (Fearless, Enemy). Continue reading →

A new “dramedy” titled Burnt from director John Wells (August: Osage County, Shameless) is opening for audiences in New York City and Los Angeles today, with a nationwide expansion expected in the next few weeks. The film comes from a film adaptation of a story by Michael Kalesniko (Private Parts, Iron Sky) by screenwriter Steven Knight (Eastern Promises, Locke), centering around a chef who, after ruining his career with drugs and eccentric behavior, returns to London in an attempt to make a comeback by opening a restaurant capable of receiving three Michelin stars. Actor Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook, American Hustle) stars as chef Adam Jones, with actors Sienna Miller (American Sniper, Foxcatcher), Daniel Bruhl (Inglorious Basterds, Rush), Ricardo Scamarcio (My Brother is an Only Child, Loose Cannons), Omar Sy (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Jurassic World), Emma Thompson (Love Actually, Saving Mr. Banks), Uma Thurman (Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill Vol. 1), and Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina, The Man From UNCLE). The film is expected to be a semi-biographical story based around the life of Gordon Ramsey (Hell’s Kitchen, Kitchen Knightmares). The trailer is available here on MADE. Look for the nationwide expansion to your area in the next couple of weeks. Enjoy the weekend!

Although nothing has been set in stone, producer Kathleen Kennedy (Back to the Future, Jurassic Park) has confirmed through Vanity Fair that another Indiana Jones movie will eventually be in development at Walt Disney Pictures/Lucasfilm. Kennedy noted in the interview that she is not quite sure when the film will get underway, and said that a script hasn’t even been drafted yet, but it has definitely been on the discussion board. While this doesn’t necessarily come as surprising news, it will be so much worse if they decide to keep the story-line going from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull with Harrison Ford (Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Clear and Present Danger) and Shia LaBeouf (Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Fury). Rumors of a series reboot with a new leading actor such as Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, American Hustle) or Chris Pratt (Parks & Recreation, Guardians of the Galaxy) as Indiana Jones sounds much more promising, but with so much still up in the air in terms of production we’ll have to wait and see when a script is finally underway. Stay tuned.

Fans of Jennifer Lawrence can now get a copy of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 1 on Blu-Ray/DVD, but the Oscar-winner is also back on the big-screen in a new drama that reunites here with Silver Linings Playbook-costar Bradley Cooper (The Hangover, American Sniper), titled Serena. Directed by Susanne Bier (After The Wedding, Love Is All You Need) from screenwriter Christopher Kyle‘s adaptation of Ron Rash‘s novel, the story follows industrial-tycoon George Pemberton, who must choose between the future of his timber-empire and his marriage to the beautiful but cunning Serena. The film looks like it is really well done, and the acting appears on-par, but considering it’s a period-love drama (the story takes place in Great Depression-era North Carolina), it will most likely only appeal to a certain crowd. Nevertheless, if you’re a fan of either Lawrence or Cooper, go and check it out. You can see the trailer here on MADE.

Although the upcoming novel, Orphan X, by author Gregg Hurwitz will not be on book shelves until next February, Oscar-nominee Bradley Cooper is already looking to produce the book for a big-screen adaptation with The Hangoverdirector Todd Phillips, and the actor may also be planning to star in the film as well. The plot of the book follows Evan “Nowhere Man” Smoak, a problem-solver of sorts, who helps people in need by pretty much any means necessary. Smoak’s new case finds him investigating an LAPD detective suspected of running an organization specializing in human slavery and trafficking. A full-on film production, however, is still a long ways away, especially since the book will not be published until next year, so we’ll have to wait to see if Cooper remains with the project and whether or not Phillips, who is known for comedies like Road Trip and Old School, will stay in the director’s chair. Stay tuned.

This week I was able to see an early screening of director Clint Eastwood‘s upcoming biographical drama American Sniper. The movie was adapted for the big screen by Jason Hall (Spread, Paranoia) from the book by Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, Scott McEwen, and James Defelice and chronicles Kyle’s four tours in the Middle East during the War on Terror. It is easy to see Eastwood’s style of filmmaking shine through, especially with the cinematography and camera-work, and the portrayals of Chris and Taya Kyle by Oscar-nominee Bradley Cooper and Golden Globe-nominee Sienna Miller is pretty impressive. What strikes you most about the plot, however, is not necessarily Kyle’s reputation as the most lethal sniper in US military history, but rather the apparent strain that Kyle’s military service has on his personality and his perception of his role in the war and his family life. Eastwood also does a fine job of really pulling you into Kyle’s environment, often building up very intense combat scenarios that you can only see from Kyle’s perspective. Ultimately it was a very entertaining watch, filled with drama, suspense, and yes, some pretty graphic images at times. I would definitely recommend seeing this one. I can’t really provide a comparison to the book seeing as I haven’t read it, but if I do while it’s still in theaters I’ll let you know what I think. You can see American Sniper in theaters this Friday, January 16th. Enjoy!